Welcome to .txtLAB, a laboratory for cultural analytics at McGill University directed by Andrew Piper. We explore the use of computational and quantitative approaches towards understanding literature and culture in both the past and present. Our aim is to engage in critical and creative uses of the tools of network science, machine learning, or image processing to think about language, literature, and culture at both large and small scale.

Is data good for creative writing? My interview with @DIYMFA Radio

This past Spring I conducted an interview with Gabriela Pereira, host of @DIYMFA Radio. These are a fantastic series of podcasts for aspiring writers to learn more about the craft without paying enormous sums of money to attend an MFA program.

The idea we discuss in the interview is how these tools can help us be more creative as writers rather than just help publishers weed out their slush pile or come up with marketing budgets. As I discuss in the interview, data can make us more self-conscious as writers, teaching us about stylistic weaknesses or giving suggestions about how to expand our plots or make our characters more complex. At the same time, it can also help writers better understand the markets they are writing for. Publishing can often seem like a black box to those on the outside. Data can make that world more transparent.